Trial of Benefit Finding in Caregivers: The Building Resources in Caregivers (BRiC) Study (BRiC)

October 5, 2015 updated by: Brenda O'Connell, University of Limerick

A Randomised Controlled Trial of Benefit Finding in Caregivers: The Building Resources in Caregivers (BRiC) Study Protocol

A randomised controlled trial that will compare the effects of a brief benefit -finding writing intervention with an active control condition on quality of life and psychological health among informal caregivers.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

A double-blind, randomized controlled parallel group study design with an equal 1:1 allocation ratio will be employed. This study will compare the effect of a brief benefit finding writing intervention with a control condition among caregivers. Caregivers currently caring for people with mental and physical disabilities will be randomised into a two-week, a) a benefit writing group or b) a control writing group. Caregivers will complete self-report measures relating to their care-recipient and themselves (e.g., illness type, and sociodemographics) and psychometric measures of benefit finding (primary outcome), psychological distress and quality of life(secondary outcomes). These will be assessed via online software at baseline, immediate post-test and at 3 month follow-up. Additionally, expectations and fidelity indices will be assessed and qualitative commentary on participation experiences gathered.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
88

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Must be over the age of 18
  • Must identify as caring for a family member, friend or relative
  • Must be living in Ireland

Exclusion Criteria:

  • If the person cared for is living in institutional care

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Triple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Benefit-finding Writing Activity
For two weeks, on six days of their choice, caregivers will be instructed to write about their thoughts and feelings in a diary/ notebook about the benefits of caring.
Behavioral: Benefit-finding Writing Activity
Caregivers will be instructed to write about the benefits of caring, considering things such as improved social relationship, appreciation of life and loved ones, and the positive consequences with respect to these.
Active Comparator: Neutral Writing activity
For two weeks, on six days of their choice, caregivers will be instructed to write about a neutral topic.
Behavioral: Neutral Writing Activity
The control group will be instructed to write number of things about the weather that day. Although the sentences can be as long or as short as they like, they will be encouraged to try and aim for about 3 or 4 sentences at least.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Benefit Finding (Adapted version of the 17-item Benefit Finding Scale; Antoni et al., 2001)
Time Frame: Baseline, immediate post-intervention (two weeks), and 3 months
Used to assess change in benefit-finding levels over the course of the intervention and follow-up
Baseline, immediate post-intervention (two weeks), and 3 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Caregiver Quality of Life (40 item Adult Carer Quality of Life Questionnaire; Joseph, Becker, Elwick, & Silburn, 2012)
Time Frame: Baseline, immediate post-intervention (two weeks), and 3 months
This measures quality of life in eight separate domains: support for caring; caring choice; caring stress; money matters; personal growth; sense of value; ability to care; and carer satisfaction. Used to assess change in quality of life levels over the course of the intervention and follow-up
Baseline, immediate post-intervention (two weeks), and 3 months
Psychological Distress (Hospital and Anxiety Depression Scale; Zigmond & Snaith, 1983)
Time Frame: Baseline, immediate post-intervention (two weeks), and 3 months
Used to assess change in psychological distress levels over the course of the intervention and follow-up, and as a moderator
Baseline, immediate post-intervention (two weeks), and 3 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
University of Limerick

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Carolan Research Institute
Care Alliance Ireland

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Study Director: Stephen Gallagher, PhD, University of Limerick, Department of Psychology
  • Principal Investigator: Charles Brand, MSc, University of Limerick
  • Principal Investigator: Brenda H O' Connell, B.A, University of Limerick

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
June 1, 2015

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
October 1, 2015

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
October 1, 2015

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
May 11, 2015

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 13, 2015

First Posted (Estimate)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
May 14, 2015

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
October 6, 2015

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
October 5, 2015

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
October 1, 2015

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • BRiC2015

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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